T20I Cup Team Preview: Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe have been considered 'minnows' for a long time now in international cricket, but all the other teams will know that it's a bit dangerous to brush them away. They have a more than decent side in the shorter formats, and are capable of beating the best in business on their day. The World T20 gives them yet another opportunity to impress in the big arena, but they are placed in a tough group along with hosts Sri Lanka and South Africa.

How they've fared

Zimbabwe have not been in the best of forms; they lost both their warm up matches before the tournament though they played the relatively easier sides - Ireland and Bangladesh. More than the losses itself, the absence of a fight would hurt their confidence going into the big tournament. Their recent form in T20s has been up and down; they defeated a second string South Africa and Bangladesh in a tri series in June, but did not have much success before that.

Zimbabwe's performances in previous World Cups have not been great either. In the inaugural edition in 2007, they managed to defeat Australia, but lost badly to England in their next game. They didn't participate in the 2009 edition due to political reasons as the tournament was held in England. In 2010 too, they failed to qualify for the second round, losing both their league games.

What's in store:

Zimbabwe are placed in a tough group; they have to face hosts Sri Lanka in the tournament opener before playing one of the big sides of the tournament - South Africa. But a win would do - if they manage to surprise one of the big sides in the league stages, they might as well qualify for the second stage. It's hard to back Zimbabwe to qualify from this group, but it's impossible to write them off either.

Why you should back them

There is a 'surprise' factor associated with Zimbabwe which makes it impossible to write them off. Australia found that out in 2007, and one of South Africa or Sri Lanka might be at the receiving end this time. They have a more than decent squad in place and are led by a captain who is respected as a batsman - Brendan Taylor. Their batting has quite a few powerful hitters apart from the captain - Masakadza, Chigumbura and Craig Ervine form the crux of the line up, and the bowling has some variations too. Brian Vitori and Kyle Jarvis have made impressive starts to their careers, while Ray Price and Prosper Utseya add to the spin options. They have a balanced squad in place, and with the kind of fielding they are capable of producing, they might just have it in them to repeat the surprise factor.

Why you shouldn't back them

Zimbabwe's biggest problem has been the lack of consistency. They are capable of winning a game or two but you wouldn't expect them to go far in the tournament. Their recent results shows this trend as well - they won the tri series involving South Africa but lost their warm ups to Bangladesh and Irelend. Zimbabwe will have to play beyond their potential to qualify from a tough group, and do that consistently to proceed far in the tournament.

Watch out for

Brendan Taylor: the captain did not score many runs in the warm ups, but has the reputation of scoring when it matters the most. Zimbabwe's chances in the tournament might well revolve around the batting, which is led by Taylor.

Jarvis and Vitori: Zimbabwe's young pace duo of Kyle Jarvis and Brian Vitori have made decent starts to their careers, which has increased expectations from the side. They have the variations between them, and their performances could define that of their side.

Stats:

Hamilton Masakadza is the only Zimbabwe player to have scored more than 500 runs in Twenty20 Internationals and he holds the record for the highest individual score for Zimbabwe in T20Is. Masakadza's 79 against Canada in October 2008 is Zimbabwe's highest individual score, followed by Brendan Taylor's 75* against New Zealand in February 2012.

Unbeatable on their day, mesmerising the opposition and haplessly poor on the other, collapsing like 9 pins, but Nikhil Narain finds out why they have been so consistent in the shortest format of the game.